Planet Mermaid Blog
Small Business Saturday - 7th December
Small Business Saturday originated in the US back in 2010 by the founder American Express who has had a long history of championing the high street. Now in its seventh year in the UK the campaign has grown significantly with an estimated £812M spent in small businesses across the UK on this day in 2018– an 8% increase on 2017. This National Day is crucial to the success of small businesses. Running a business is not for the faint hearted. While there are a number of small businesses in a broad range of industries that perform well and are continuously profitable, a larger proportion of companies fail within the first 18 months of operation, according to the Small Business Administration (SBA). Small Business Saturday UK is a grassroots, non-commercial campaign highlighting small business success and encourages consumers to “shop local” and support local businesses in their communities. On Small Business Saturday customers across the UK go out and support all types of small businesses online and in stores, and many businesses take part in this day by hosting events and offering discounts. https://bit.ly/2OHI90a Planet Mermaid knows only too well the importance of customer loyalty and support. Although an online shop, during the first two weeks in December they will be showcasing their mermaid collections and accessories at their very own “pop up shop” at Centre:MK in Milton Keynes along with other small similar minded businesses. They will be offering discounts on all collections throughout the two weeks so please go along and say hi! You can even try on your very own mermaid tail! It is a fantastic opportunity for Planet Mermaid to meet their fellow mermaid lovers. Simply visit https://bit.ly/34lT1HR to find out more! Small Business Saturday is such an important day and with Christmas shopping at the forefront of people’s minds at the moment all we ask is for you to think twice before you make that purchase. Any help to support this day would be gratefully received, not only for Planet Mermaid, but for other small businesses whose main purpose is to put the customer first and offer a personal service. To help please think to shop local first and promote the businesses you feel are worth advertising on your social media platforms, why not even go as far as recommending your favourite small business to your friends and family! Help us promote Small Business Saturday and Planet Mermaid on our social media platforms #shopSmall We would be eternally grateful! Without your support small businesses like us would not survive. Happy shopping! Keep mermaiding and sharking! x
National Cookie Day - 4th December
How to Celebrate! National Cookie Day is a day when people come together to bake cookies. It is a time when parents and their children have fun in the kitchen making lots of edible treats for all to enjoy and with lots of different cookie recipes to choose from the hardest part is deciding which recipe is the tastiest! Who would not want to get together and celebrate such a fun and yummy day! History of the Cookie – How did it all come about? While the origin of National Cookie Day is unknown, the history of the cookie is very interesting. Cookies were invented during the 7th century in Persia. It then spread throughout Europe thanks to the Muslim conquest of Spain where the cookie would continue to march across the continent until it became one of the most eaten snack foods in Europe by the 15th Century. The story does not stop in Europe, in the 17th century the cookie had made its way across the Atlantic into the Americas via the Dutch settlers of the time. Colonial housewives snatched up the concept of the cookie and began making their own using butter or if they wanted to be more elaborate rose water, maple syrup or even beer! Source: https://bit.ly/2OGwm2c Even today cookies are a very popular choice when it comes to baking and consuming. We Brits ate a record breaking £3 billion in 2018 alone! Mermaid Inspired Cookies Why not have a go yourself! For the mermaid lovers amongst us it is the perfect opportunity to bake mermaid inspired cookies. To get your creative design juices flowing below is just a small selection of amazing mermaid inspired cookie designs which you could try at home: Source: Google To get you going why not try out this delicious recipe: Under the Sea Cookies Ingredients For the cookies 100g butter, softened 75g caster sugar 1 egg yolk 200g plain flour 1-2 tbsp milk For the royal icing 15g egg white 455g icing sugar 75g water To decorate Wilton® Colour Right System Scrumptious Sprinkles Unicorn Sprinkletti Mix or Under the Sea Sprinkletti Mix Instructions Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas 6. Lightly grease 3 baking trays. Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and cream together until light and fluffy. Separate the egg yolk from the white and set the white aside. Beat in the egg yolk. Sift in the flour and mix well with enough milk to give a fairly soft dough. Knead the mixture gently on a lightly floured surface and roll out to 5mm thick. Cut into your chosen cookie shapes, place on the prepared baking trays and bake for 8-10 minutes. To make the royal icing, first sieve the icing sugar into a bowl. Add the egg white and combine gently. Add the water and mix with a spoon until combined. Using an electric mixer, mix on low for up to 15 minutes until you have a nice light texture. To colour your icing, first mix colours in a ramekin or small bowl, then add small amounts using a cocktail stick to achieve the colour you want – you will need approx. 2 tablespoons of royal icing to 2-3 touches from a cocktail stick. We used the following number of drops from the Wilton Colour Right System: Blue: 4 x blue Lilac: 6 x red, 2 x blue Jade green: 8 x blue, 4 x yellow Pink: 8 x red, 1 x blue, 6x pink Pipe the outline on the biscuits using a disposable piping bag fitted with a piping tube. When the outline has dried, let down your icing by adding a few drops of water until it has the consistency of thick yoghurt. Spoon the let-down icing into a piping bag, snip off the tip to make a very small hole and fill in the middle of your icing design. Use a small decorating brush to help spread it to the edges and remove any air bubbles. Leave to dry completely unless you’re adding sprinkles to the wet icing. Decorating tips Mermaid – ice the face, arms and middle first and leave to dry, then ice the rest. Add sprinkles to her tail when the icing is wet. When fully dry, paint on her face using a black edible food pen. Turtle – add sprinkles to the wet icing to make the shell. Shark – pipe on the teeth and eye using white icing. Seahorse – pipe a wavy snail trail from its head to tail and three little dots in rows on its fin. Attach tiny pearls and stars to this icing then paint on eyes. Starfish – stick a large pearl from the sprinkles in the middle, then pipe small dots of white icing along the centre of each arm. Source: https://bit.ly/2OYo3iz Why not have a go yourself and send us your creations to our social media pages, we would love to see them and share with fellow mermaid lovers! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid Visit www.planetmermaid.com to view our latest in amazing fabric mermaid tails for kids and adults, woman’s mermaid monofins, siren tails and a whole lot more! Keep mermaiding and sharking x
World Kindness Day 2019
World Kindness Day is celebrated annually on 13th November with the attempt to make the world a better place by celebrating and promoting good deeds and pledging acts of kindness, either as individuals or as organisations. What does kindness really mean? Kindness is defined as the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate. Affection, gentleness, warmth, concern, and care are words that are associated with kindness. While kindness has a connotation of meaning someone is naive or weak, that is not the case. Being kind often requires courage and strength. Source: Google The origin of the word kindness came from the old English word “Kyndnes” meaning “nation” or “produce, increase”. It derived from the Middle English word “Kindenes” meaning “noble deeds” or “courtesy” and the first recorded use of the word kindness was in the 14th century. World Kindness Day was launched in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement, an organisation formed at a Tokyo conference in 1997 made up of like-minded kindness organisations from all around the world. To date there are over 28 nations involved in this amazing day where the mission is to create a kinder world by inspiring individuals and organisations towards better kindness. Kindness Day UK is organised by Kindness UK, a non profit organisation launched on the 13th November 2010. Since its establishment this day has grown from strength to strength s and now individuals, schools, charities, institutions and businesses all take part. How can you join in the fun? If you would like to take part all you need to do is pledge a good deed, for example you can: Give complements Smile at a stranger Hold the door open for someone Say thank you Offer support to those in need Give up your seat to someone else on public transport Offer your lunch to someone less fortunate than yourself Offer to make the tea and coffee to all your work colleagues Share treats with your friends …anything goes! Most of us take for granted what we have and are so focused on our own day to day lives that we forget what is happening around us, this day brings it home and shows you that by simply doing something nice for others really does feels good! Planet Mermaid challenges you to do five acts of kindness for other people. We would love to hear what you have done and how it has made you feel. Please share your acts of kindness with us on our social media platforms using #WKD, we would love to see them and share with fellow mermaid lovers! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid Visit www.planetmermaid.com to view our latest in amazing fabric mermaid tails for kids and adults alike! Happy World Kindness Day Mermaid lovers! Keep mermaiding and sharking For further information on this National Day please visit the following websites: https://bit.ly/2rl9Zap https://bit.ly/2K4Q0n8
Christmas Postage Dates!
Christmas will soon be here and to avoid disappointment on the big day we have a round-up of the final Christmas posting dates below: International: Monday 9 December Africa, Asia, Caribbean, Central and South America, Far and Middle East Tuesday 10 December Cyprus, Malta Wednesday 11 December Eastern Europe (except Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia) Thursday 12 December Australia, Greece, New Zealand and Turkey Saturday 14 December Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Italy, Poland, Sweden, USA Monday 16 December Austria, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland Wednesday 18 December Belgium, France, Ireland, Luxembourg United Kingdom: Wednesday 18 December 2nd Class and 2nd Class Signed For Friday 20 December 1st Class and 1st Class Signed For and Royal Mail Tracked 48 Saturday 21 December Royal Mail Tracked 24 Monday 23 December Special Delivery Guaranteed Planet Mermaid is the perfect one stop shop to find that very special someone that extra special Christmas gift. Whether you are looking for a fabric mermaid tail, a woman’s mermaid monofin, woman’s mermaid tail, t-shirts, bikinis, swimming costumes, shark outfits, leggings, mermaid blankets, hair accessories and much much more look no further than simply visiting www.planetmermaid.com Our new “Lady of the Lake” collection released just in time for Christmas will definitely bring a smile to your little ones face on Christmas morning! Who knew Christmas shopping could be so much fun, the only problem you will have is working out which design to go for! Simply visit www.planetmermaid.com to find out more… Happy Christmas Shopping! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid
Argh me hearties International Talk like a Pirate Day is Back!
Background This fun celebration started more than twenty years ago in June 1995 by two men Ol’ Chumbucket and Cap’n Slappy (formally known as John Baur and Mark Summers) their aim was for people to dress and talk like pirates and generally have a fun time doing it! It’s a day of fun but can also be a good excuse for everyone to raise some money for charity as well…what could be more perfect! Source: Google Taking Part Taking part is easy whether it is at school, work, coffee morning, nursery, in a shop just make sure you remember your eye patch, toy parrot and stripy trousers and a chest full of treasure and you’re good to go! Source: Google Talk like a Pirate To complete your pirate inspired look you will need to also talk the lingo, below are some useful phrases to help you on your way! Ahoy! – “ Hello!” Avast! – Stop and give attention. ... Aye! – “Why yes, I agree most heartily with everything you just said or did.” Aye aye! ... Arrr! ... Beauty – The best possible pirate address for a woman. ... Bilge rat – The bilge is the lowest level of the ship. ... Bung hole – Victuals on a ship were stored in wooden casks. Why not impress your friends and colleagues with some good old fashioned tummy aching pirate themed jokes to get the party started… Q: How much did the pirate pay for his piercings? A: A buck-an-ear Q: How do you make a pirate really mad? A: Take away the ‘p Q: What's a pirate's favourite movie? A: Booty and the Beast Q: Why couldn't the 10 year old go to the pirate movie? A: Because it was rated arrrrrrr. Q: What was the pirate's name that had no legs or arms and fell overboard? A: Bob. Source: http://www.chiff.com/home_life/holiday/talk-like-pirate-day.htm Please send us photos of your pirate inspired day through our social media platforms, we would love to see them and share with fellow mermaid and shark lovers! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid Keep mermaiding and sharking! Visit www.planetmermaid.com to view our latest in amazing mermaid tails for kids and adults alike! #talklikeapirateday http://talklikeapirate.com Source: Google
Planet Mermaid has Launched National Merboy Day!
Planet Mermaid can exclusively reveal that it is launching National Merboy Day on Wednesday 4th September 2019. Merboys are often seen as the poor relation to their female counterpart the mermaid but Planet Mermaid is hoping that the launch of this day will alter people’s perceptions and bring them to the forefront. History A “merboy” a young merman, takes the form of a boy human from the waist up and a fish like creature from the waist down, similar to mermaids in having scaly fish tails to replace legs.In much contrast to mermaids mermen or boys were traditionally known to be unattractive, however this theory has been changed over time and they are now perceived to be handsome. Mermen have also been known to be wild and naughty but also wise teachers. Similar to mermaids they can attract humans with their enchanted beauty and siren like singing voices. To celebrate this day Help Planet Mermaid celebrate “National Merboy Day” by putting on an activity where you live. Why not have a party with your friends and all dress up or celebrate at a water park or even just be in your own garden with a paddling pool…there are so many different ways we can promote the true excellence that is to be a Merboy! Hope we have given you the enthusiasm to make this an annual event …..watch out mermaids our merboys are coming to get you!Please send through any photos of you capturing this special day our social media platforms, we would love to see them and share with fellow mermaid lovers! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid Visit www.planetmermaid.com to view our latest in amazing mermaid and shark tails for kids and adults alike!Keep mermaiding and sharking!
Amazing Sand Art
Sand art is the practice of modelling sand into an artistic masterpiece. It can come in many forms, sculptures, sand painting or in sand bottles. It is amazing that just using two basic ingredients, sand and water, available on a sandy beach can create such incredibly intricate masterpieces. Origins Sand art is the oldest form of sculpting in the world. It actually dates back to prehistoric times and it is even believed that the ancient Egyptians made a sand sculpture version of their pyramids! It was not however until the nineteenth century when the first sand sculpture was documented which subsequently took a big popularity leap forward with more and more people trying it due to it being a lucrative profession. The 20th century then saw another massive increase in popularity where sand sculptures were built around many beach resorts and competitions formed offering attractive prizes. Source: www.crystalsand.org/history Competitions Sandcastles are typically made by children and parents for fun on holiday but due to its popularity competitions are put on around the world for adults to show off their beach art skills. The largest sandcastle made was 18 feet tall and created by Ronald Malcnujio. He was only five foot tall and had to use several ladders to complete his masterpiece. The sculpture used one ton of sand and 10 litres of water! The recorded world’s tallest sand castle was built on Myrtle Beach in South Carolina in 2007 as part of their Sun Fun Festival. The structure was 49.55 feet high and took 10 days to build using 300 truckloads of sand! This record was eventually broken this year when a 58 foot tall sand castle as erected in Rügen, Germany. Source: WikipediaTools to make the best sculpturesIf all this has excited you into building your own masterpiece don’t forget Planet Mermaid has a beach art competition closing on the 30th September! – see www.planetmermaid.com for further details. Below are some helpful tips to get you going: Sand: Add sand to the form Water: Pour enough water to completely cover the sand Stir: Use hands or a shovel to stir the sand really well while the water level is above the sand level Tap: Use hands to tap the sides of the form to help the sand settle more quickly Sand Art examples Sand art comes in many forms with many different subjects being chosen to sculpt but due to our love and passion for anything mermaid and shark inspired below are a few amazing creations to get your design juices flowing and hopefully help you out when entering the competition! Please send us your own creations through our social media platforms, we would love to see them and share with fellow mermaid lovers! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid Keep mermaiding and sharking! Don’t forget Planet Mermaids beach art competition closes on the 30th September! ..get entering and good luck! Visit www.planetmermaid.com to view our latest in amazing mermaid tails for kids and adults alike!
The Evolution of Make Up
History behind Make Up Make up started to be used as early as 4000B.C to enhance beauty. Ancient Egyptians, the first known to have created this worldwide craze, shows images of Egyptian ladies wearing makeup around their eyes. It was understood that the main reason for this ritual was to please the gods, as women felt their appearance was directly related to their spiritual worth. The eye makeup applied was called mesdement (from the ancient Egyptian word msdmt) a mixture of copper and lead ore around their eyes. Green shades then went on the lower eyelids and black and dark grey was applied to the lashes and upper eyelids. It was thought that dark colours were said to ward off "evil eyes". To complete the ornate look around the eyes, they added almond shapes of dark-coloured powder (later called kohl) that might have been a combination of ingredients such as burnt almonds, oxidised copper, copper ores, lead, ash, and ochre. The connection between beauty and spirituality remained for centuries until the Romans came into power and discontinued many of the Egyptians cosmetic formulas. Since then the way people express themselves has evolved enormously. The cosmetics industry makes billions of pounds annually and fashion has set the standards for beauty. In one form or another it is the perfect way of expressing a person’s inner passion through the art of make up! For merfolk it is the perfect solution to expressing their devotion to all things mer related. Below are some fabulous creations to get your creative juices flowing! Mermaid Make Up Art Not forgetting our Mermen! Mermen Make Up ArtThere are lots of tutorials available to help you stage by stage, why not start with our favourite below! Please send us your own creations through our social media platforms, we would love to see them and share with fellow mermaid lovers! @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid Keep mermaiding and sharking! Visit www.planetmermaid.com to view our latest in amazing mermaid tails for kids and adults alike!
World Photo Day – 19th August 2019
On Monday 19th August photography lovers of all ages around the world will be celebrating the annual World Photo Day. Its prime focus is to inspire the positive changes that have been made around the world. It is a way of connecting people and at the same time raise awareness through the art of photography. History behind this day World Photo Day was created in 2009 by an Australian photographer named Korske Ara and the 19th was chosen as it was the date the patent of the Daguerreotype (an early method of photography) was bought by the French government. This day also coincides with the World Humanitarian Day, Growth from modest beginnings A whopping 500 million people are now signed up since its foundation in 2010 where just 250 people registered. This is a fantastic platform for photographers to share images on their passion and raise awareness of what is going on around them. Passion for all things Oceans and Marine Conservation World photo day is a fantastic opportunity to renew our appreciation for our planets oceans and marine life that lives below the magical waters and raise awareness about the breathtaking diversity that marine life brings. The ocean is just one of those amazing places which oozes fantastic sea life species and with nearly 200,000 already identified species with millions yet to be accounted for the ocean needs much needed recognition and exposure to get the recognition it deserves.It is a very sad fact that as much as 40% of the ocean is now heavily affected by the most significant and direct threat of over exploitation of marine species as well as other threats such as pollution, loss of coastal habitats and climate change and being part of World Photo Day it gives the opportunity to bring these issues to the forefront to such a large audience. Amazing Ocean and Marine Life Photo Examples To find out more and to sign up please visit www.worldphotoday.com. Why not start your photographic journey by getting some mermaid training in at Mermaid Wave Swim School – www.mermaidwave.com. There are centres all around the UK where you will be able to learn to swim like a mermaid in preparation for your magical journey photographing the wonders of the sea. Call us on 01234 352488 to find out more or to book your space. If you already have been lucky enough to capture the wonders of the sea through your own camber lens we would love to see and share with our fellow mermaid lovers. All you need to do is upload onto our us social media platforms. @PlanetMermaid #planetmermaid @mermaidwave #mermaiwave Keep Mermaiding and sharking!
